Ed McMahon

Ed McMahon seemed like an alright guy. He always wore those big old people glasses, so giving him any less than three stars would be an injustice that I just couldn't comment further on. McMahon also introduced the idea of large novelty checks that none of us will ever see.

This guy had gigs to get me to buy crap for my entire life, and yet he died broke? How was that possible?

Major icon in the television world. Some of the things he was famous for was "The Tonight Show", "Star Search", and he co-hosted on the Jerry Lewis telethon. He was a pretty busy man. I don't think there's much of anybody that hasn't heard the name Ed McMahon. He will be missed.

Great guy and a real trooper, I remember seeing him on a special Family Fued , with his neck in a brace, he broke his neck and still did the show, even at his age! Also, he was a fixture on shows like Star Search and the Tonight Show, and of course, the Publishers Clearing House commercials. I think he may be missed the most, though, on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telephon, were he helped out for years, even with his health problems. This is a sad loss for Jerry and his kids.

He just cramped Johnny's style.

I think of Carson and McMahon as a sort of white noise that was faint but often present in the background of my life up until fairly recently, when Carson retired and then expired. My parents watched the show...not religiously, but often enough so that if I woke up in the middle of the night as a kid, I could sometimes groggily hear the "Heeeerrrreeee's Johnny!!!" or Doc Severinsen's brassy Las-Vegas style band music, like some nocturnal accompaniment to a nightmare I hadn't yet had. When I became old enough to stay up late, I would sometimes watch part of the show if Carson had on a guest that I liked (I always tried to catch Don Rickles, or Robert Blake, or Richard Pryor). Carson always seemed to be noted more for his impeccable "timing" than because of any outstanding comedic talent, but he did make me laugh fairly often, whether it was because the jokes were supposed to be funny and usually weren't, or just because of some inherent, enigmatic quality that he possessed. There came a... Read more

Didn't he hang up his celebrity in 1993?

Can't say I miss him, but you've got to give the guy credit for making the most of a career that mostly consisted of going "Here's Johnny!"

The golden years of The Tonight Show were before my time, but Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon were still legendary public figures when I was growing up. McMahon was a likable character who probably worked harder than most people thought to help Carson look so good. He was always doing something on TV, and he was just one of those personalities everybody knew. His passing isn't too shocking since he hasn't been seen much of lately, and news of his health struggles had been publicized.

Won't miss him. Haven't since Johnny retired from the show. No reason to start now. I wish him the best in his after life. But, he has always made me think... Anyone want to create a list of "The Luckiest White Men in America"? I'll start with Ed. Next up? George Noory. Anyone? Anyone?

In response to Ridgewalker's question: Chris Matthews? Maybe. Keith Olbermann? Almost. Hey, wait! I know...............Ben Affleck! How'd I do? ;^)